In the first full weekend of 2018, the Specialty roster is, not surprisingly, dominated by late 2017 release awards-hopefuls including many that will pack the Beverly Hilton tonight for the Golden Globes. Neon and 30West’s I, Tonya starring Margot Robbie played nearly 200 additional locations over New Years weekend after spending most of December with very limited runs, grossing over $2.42M.

Focus Features added two theaters for Paul Thomas Anderson’s Phantom Thread in its third weekend, grossing a robust $245K. Fox’s The Post is up for a half-dozen Globes tonight and is holding well in limited release, grossing $1.7M. Searchlight’s The Shape of Water placed 11th in the overall box office as of Sunday morning, grossing $3.1M in just over eight hundred runs.

Sony Pictures Classics

SPC’s Call Me By Your Name took in nearly $759K with two additional runs in its 7th frame bringing its cume to just over $6M. Gary Oldman’s Darkest Hour went full throttle into over seventeen hundred locations over the weekend, grossing $6.35M. And Lady Bird, which officially picked up its nod for Best Picture this past week at the New York Film Critics Circle, added theaters over the weekend, sailing across a $34M cume.

Newcomers reporting numbers were light as of early Sunday. Film Movement opened Israeli drama In Betweenat Landmark’s Sunshine and 57 West theaters Friday. The Toronto 2016 debut grossed $5,435, averaging $2,673.

“The film has been very successful with younger audiences in France, Spain and the U.K.,” noted Michael Rosenberg, president of Film Movement earlier this week. “Here in the U.S., the film has been warmly received during its festival run. From New York’s Other Israel Film Festival to the Arab Film Festival and Outfest, the film has been connecting with a wide audience of both young and old.”

Beyond core Jewish audiences, the company is targeting Arab American and LGBT audiences as it expands next week to L.A. followed by select cities around the country.

China Lion opened its AFM pick-up Namiay in 21 locations Friday. Over the weekend, the Chinese drama-fantasy grossed $40K ($1,904 per theater average).

“We liked the fact that singer/actor Karry Wang was attached, who was a member of the very popular TFBoys group, and that it was based on a best selling Japanese novel by the same author as our hit film The Devotion of Suspect X, which we released last year and grossed nearly $700K,” commented China Lion’s Robert Lundberg Sunday. “It had a successful Japanese film adaptation released last year in September and we had hoped to see similar success for the Chinese version of the film. While the box office numbers are not what we would have liked, we’re still hoping that Karry Wang fans will find the film in the coming days.”

China Lion did well, however, with the second weekend of Ex-File 3, which played several fewer locations, but saw its weekend gross top its debut New Years weekend. The feature grossed $170K in 17 theaters, averaging $10K. In its first frame, the title took in $110K from 21 runs ($5,238 PTA). It has cumed over $511K.

Sony Pictures Classics

Film Stars Don’t Die in Liverpool remained in four theaters in its second weekend. The Sony Pictures Classics release grossed $24,268 Friday to Sunday, averaging $6,067 (-33%). Last weekend, the feature starring Annette Bening and Jamie Bell took in $36K ($9,012 PTA). Film Stars has cumed $83,702.

SPC’s Happy End played an additional three locations in its third weekend, grossing $14,044 in six theaters, averaging $2,341. Friday to Sunday of New Years weekend, the film grossed $15,466 ($5,155 PTA). Its cume is $83,637.

In its third weekend, Well Go USA’s Korean drama-fantasy Along With the Gods: The Two Worlds crossed well over seven figures. In 35 locations, the feature grossed $280K, averaging $8K bringing its cume to over $1.12M.

Western drama Hostiles starring Sam Shepherd, Rosamund Pike and Ava Cooper played 41 additional runs in its third frame. Released by Entertainment Studios Motion Pictures, the title grossed $310K in 46 theaters, averaging $6,739, which was only a 6% drop from its $7,143 PTA last weekend in 5 locations. Hostiles as cumed $435,194.

Focus Features

Focus Features’ Phantom Thread starring Daniel Day-Lewis played two additional theaters in its third weekend, grossing $245K ($40,833 PTA). Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, the feature took in $220K in its three-day gross New Years weekend ($55K average). Phantom Thread has cumed $952,000. Focus will expand the feature to 50 theaters next weekend.

Steven Spielberg’s The Post remains in limited release, now in its third weekend. Starring Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks, the film which is vying for six Golden Globes this evening including Best Drama did a solid $1.7M in 36 theaters, averaging a stellar $47,222, the highest PTA of the weekend. In 9 theaters last weekend, the title grossed $539,440 Friday to Sunday, averaging $59,938. The Post has cumed over $3.84M.

Neon/30West’s I, Tonya is up for three Globes including Best Musical or Comedy. After spending weeks in very limited runs, the title expanded to 242 theaters Friday to robust numbers, now in its fifth frame. I, Tonya grossed $2.42M, averaging $10,026, placing it 12th in the overall box office for the weekend as of Sunday morning. The average is only about a 25% drop from last weekend’s three-day average of $13,502, though of course it was in far fewer theaters. I, Tonya has cumed over $5.29M.

A24

A24’s The Disaster Artist is closing in on $20M with a cume of over $19.46M after this weekend. Directed by James Franco, the feature grossed over $781K in 478 theaters (down from 507 the weekend prior), averaging $1,635.

Searchlight’s The Shape of Water by Guillermo del Toro played 48 additional runs in its sixth weekend, bringing its location count to 804. Starring Globe-nominee Sally Hawkins, the title grossed $3.1M, landing 11th in the overall box office. The title averaged $3,856, down only about 16% from its three-day average of $13,502 last weekend. In all, The Shape of Water is up for seven Globes including Best Drama. It has cumed $21.65M.

Also a Best Drama nominee is SPC’s Call Me By Your Name, which topped $6M in its seventh frame. In 117 theaters, the title grossed $758,726, averaging $6,458, which actually tops its three-day average of $6,105 last weekend from a gross of $702K in 115 locations.

Fellow Best Drama nominee Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri went well over twenty-five million in its ninth weekend. The Searchlight release grossed $705K in 310 theaters, averaging $2,274 bringing its cume to over $25.39M.

And up for four Globes including Best Musical or Comedy, Lady Bird grossed over $1.55M in 562 theaters (up from 392 last weekend), averaging $2,774. Lady Bird took in $1.42M Friday to Sunday of New Years weekend, averaging $3,638. The film has cumed $34.11M.

Film Movement

NEW RELEASES

In Between (Film Movement) NEW [2 Theaters] Weekend $5,435, Average $2,673